Wednesday, April 22, 2009

Thai Spring Rolls

I finally, FINALLY came across vegan spring roll wrappers in a local grocery store! All the wrappers I had seen before contained egg; these contain flour, coconut oil, and salt -- that's it. Time to whip out the Fry Daddy!

I had never made fried spring rolls before, but back when I was 17 I cut out a recipe from our local newspaper, and I still had that yellowing slip of paper in my recipe binder. I swore one day I would get around to making them, and today it was finally time to get on a roll (doh)!

The filling is a mix of blanched cabbage, carrot, and mung bean sprouts mixed with fried onion and cellophane noodles. The wrappers were easy to work with and needed just a nudge to stay sealed when they first went in the fryer.

The dipping sauce is a mix of sugar, vinegar, and sweet chile sauce from the Asian market.

Below the spring rolls we have my other recent discovery at the grocery store: enoki mushrooms, roasted in olive oil and tied with green onion stems. I placed the enoki bundles (they look like sheaves of wheat to me, wouldn't that be cute in a harvest-themed lunch box?) on a bed of brown rice. A serving of Japanese Spinach (from Vegan Lunch Box) is along the base.

Verdict: My husband was thrilled with the sudden appearance of a deep fryer in our kitchen this morning (it's just on loan from mom, so don't get used to it). He ate at least four rolls for breakfast at 6:00am before heading out for work. At lunchtime, he showed off his lunch and reports the rolls and sundry were fantastic. The mushrooms, however, were a bit chewy. 4 stars.

There are vegan spring roll wraps in Asian markets, usually labeled as frozen crepes or Lumpia (Filipino spring roll)wrappers. One brand is called, "Menlo Wraps." They are thinner than the normal egg roll wrappers, and make a crispier, lighter texture, which I like better!

Hi I really like your blog! I am considering going vegan, still on the fence about it...i'm a fruit and veggie lover already, but for some reason I'm having difficulty giving up honey and cheese...Thanks so much for posting such great things!

fancy japanese lunch- though I am a sushi fan, a little fried something here and there never hurts! (what oil do you fry in? I've herd evoo changes in high temps. and coconut is good in small quantities?) and you must cut up some potatoes, show off some old fashion real vegan fries! :-)

I find those enoki mushrooms tend to get chewy when you get too many in one bite, but their great a couple at a time, swirling in miso soup for example. Maybe bundle just a couple with some other veggies too, a slice of broccoli maybe, or asperagus tips? Looks like a fabulous lunch, all around.

I JUST RAN ACROSS YOUR BLOG!!!!! YOU ARE VERY COOL! I am a college student in the process of adopting my 3 year old stepson, and an (aspirational) vegan. Making food fun for myself and my husband is a cinch because we love healthy vegan food, and little Lonnie is getting there - he calls brussels sprouts "a special treat" - but it is hard to cultivate his expanding palate when he goes to his mother or grandmother's house on the weekends and gets a steady diet of pop tarts, chef boyardee, and general high fructose corn syrup.I can tell from your adorable obento-style offerings that I will fall in love with this website! I was once an exchange student in Japan and loved the cute, creative portions my host mom put in my tiny hello kitty lunch box (minus the processed fish paste).Sorry I rambled! Thank you!

I saw your book at the bookstore this weekend. Lovely! I'm just embarking on a vegetarian diet so I'm always looking for interesting and tasty things to make. I've been wanting to make batches of dumplings and spring rolls that I can freeze and add to my Bento Box.

I had a question about this picture. BTW I have loved your blog so far, I just found it. In the bottom part of the lunch with the mushrooms, rice and spinach, what is in the bottom left corner. I was assuming soy sauce possibly. Also where did you find such a small container for liquids?